Buy This Not That: Apricot Scrub Edition

Let me start by saying I love a good exfoliant for my body. I prefer exfoliators that do not disintegrate with warm water, ie: salt or sugar scrubs. I want an exfoliator that will stick around with me until I am done scrubbing. And I also prefer an exfoliator that is pretty intense. I use my scrubs before shaving, before getting spray tan, and any time my skin just feels dull.

I have tried a lot of different brands of exfoliators, but for the last three years I have used Walgreens brand Apricot Scrub.

This scrub is thick, coarse, and the perfect consistency. It is an absolute dupe for the St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub. And the price is about .50 cents less! One tube of this scrub would be enough for three whole body scrubs. 

A few months ago I went to Walgreens to repurchase this scrub and I saw they had changed the packaging to a solid green tube with white and yellow text on it. I bought it, got it home, and found out it was NOT what their exfoliator once had been. After the initial frustration left me I decided to buy the original St. Ives brand and while at Target I got the Up & Up version, too.

I might add that this comparison is strictly based on the St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub and it's competing store brands. Not their similar product the St. Ives Blemish Control Apricot Scrub.

Having all four products in my hands I was sure which product I would repurchase. Here is a quick comparison...

// The Up & Up scrub was not thick like the St. Ives is. It's creamy like a lotion and it has very finely ground exfoliants in it. Much less coarse than the St. Ives. This would make a great facial scrub but it is not coarse enough for me to use on my body.

// The St. Ives scrub is very thick and has a lot of coarse exfoliants in it. The ratio of exfoliants to the binder is perfect, in my opinion.

// The new Walgreens formula is the right consistency but the exfoliants are finely ground and the ratio of exfoliants to the binder is much less than the St. Ives brand.

// The old Walgreens formula was almost exactly the same as the St. Ives brand but almost a dollar less in cost. (If purchased on sale.)

Here are the prices for my area.

Walgreens Apricot Scrub (new formula)- $3.39

Walgreens Apricot Scrub (old formula)- $3.19

St. Ives Apricot Scrub- From Wal-Mart $3.87

Up & Up Apricot Scrub- From Target $2.69

After using all four products I can easily say that if Walgreens would bring back their old formula I would absolutely continue buying their store brand. Until that happens, I will be purchasing the St. Ives brand.

The Up & Up and the new Walgreens formula just do not stand up to the St. Ives consistency, texture, and end result. I will probably use them on my face until they are gone then not repurchase them.

This post was not sponsored. All opinions are my own and the products were purchased with my own money.

Buy This Not That!

I've been wanting to write this post for quite some time now! Just now getting around to it but that's alright! Let's get to it!

A little back story on this... I LOVE Jaclyn Hill. She is a makeup artist that has a channel on YouTube. She is more than a makeup artist, she is a makeup GENIUS. I have been a huge fan of hers since she started making tutorials on YouTube. I have learned soooo much from this girl. One of the biggest things I have learned from her is how to highlight.

Let's talk about her highlight here... she is GLOWING underneath her eyes. It looks amazing so I bought the powder she uses to set her under-eye concealer... Mac Shaping Powder in "Emphasize". This powder is off-white with very fine pearl.

She uses the Sigma F35 Tapered Highlighter brush to apply this powder. This brush is $24.00 dollars. WHAT!? I am not paying $24.00 for a brush that only does one thing on 1/8th of my face.

Well much to my surprise (not) Jaclyn and Sigma are affiliated and she created her own "expert box" with all of her favorite Sigma brushes... for $90.

I justified purchasing this in that I didn't have any brushes that were similar in shape or use and buying the set saved me a little money instead of buying individuals. And these brushes have great reviews and are very high quality. So I got this set and I love all of the brushes!!

Now with that being said... The F35 is not my favorite brush to set my under-eye concealer. My old ELF Studio Blush Brush is my favorite.

The brush head is a bit larger and the ferrel is pinched so it is flatter on two sides unlike the F35 which has a round ferrel. I feel like the ELF brush sets the powder better because it presses the powder in to the skin thanks to its flatter sides. It also covers a larger area and gets the job done quicker.

Did I mention it's only $3.00 DOLLARS!? I have had the ELF brush for about 3 years and it is still good as new. The quality is great and it has a plastic handle vs the Sigma's wooden handle so it should technically last longer and look new for longer.

One thing the Sigma F35 does well is highlight your cheekbones. But if you are like me and your cheekbones highlight themselves after a few hours, this brush is unnecessary.

All-in-all, get the ELF Blush Brush if you are looking to set under-eye concealer. It's $3.00 and does the job better than the Sigma F35 which is $24.00.

Have you found any products that are less expensive but do the job better? Please share!

Affordable Workout Gear

Hello friends! I've been meaning to post this for quite a while, so here it is!

Last year I spent about two months on the hunt for the perfect workout pants. I went to Old Navy, Target, Wal-Mart, Victoria's Secret, JC Penney, etc. I was looking for a capri leggings that were low rise with a little stretch. I also wanted to find something that was affordable so I could buy 3 or 4 pairs for less than $100.

I searched up and down and finally found these C9 Advanced Performance Capri Pants. I got one solid black pair and a dark heather grey pair with a blue waistband. (The grey and blue ones were on sale for $17.99.) I love these pants because they don't have the fold-over waistband that a lot of yoga and workout pants have. I also like them because they don't have a drawstring. Both the fold over and drawstring pants really bother me so I will not wear them. Also, I really like these pants because they are not fitted all the way through the knee. I don't care for tight seams that end right at the bend of my knee so these feel great. These are by far the most comfortable and flattering pair of workout pants I have ever bought.

They retail for $24.99 but I've seen them on the clearance racks before. Also, if you download the Cartwheel app, the entire C9 brand has sales that are usually 20% off. Right after the new year they had a 40% off sale so keep an eye out for that!

So after finding the perfect workout pants I got a few other items on a total whim that ended up being some of my favorite stuff.

The Danksin brand at Wal-Mart has really surprised me. I love their racerback tank. They are loose-fitted and have a lot of really cute colors for just under $6.00.

I also really like the Danskin brand sports bras. They are comfortable and hold my girls in place for my normal workouts. Two for $9.94 is a great buy!

Finally, the Danskin Performance Jacket is my jacket of choice to wear to the gym. First of all, it is a lightweight jacket that has THUMB HOLES. I love jackets with the hole for your thumb. It's like gloves attached to your jacket. Also, I got this jacket for $3.00 on the clearance rack at Wal-Mart. (I actually got two.)

Now, yes, I do know that these might not be the highest quality items and yes I know that you get what you pay for but I have had all of these items for around 6 months and they have held up. The key to keeping them nice is how you wash them. I only wash my workout clothes in warm/cold water and I never dry them in the dryer. I always hang dry my workout clothes.

So there you have a great workout outfit for right around $50 dollars. You will look cute and be comfortable so mark that off your list of excuses and get that booty to the gym!

Photo An Hour

A link up with Stephanie at Southern Mess blog and Meg at Meg O. on the Go blog.

I have been so utterly excited for this link up since last week when Steph did her post. I was so excited I didn't even know what I was supposed to do!

Thank you, Steph, for clarifying.

So I totally should have done this last Saturday on Tyson's birthday because that would have been way more exciting. Oh well. You get yesterday. Wednesday. A good ole Wednesday. Let's begin!

Just sat down at my desk to catch up on my blogs and go over the daily computer stuff. (Reading Style Me Swanky here.) Which if you are wondering is:

Check my five different email accounts.

Facebook.

Blogger.

All bank accounts (company and mine).

eBay.

YouTube.

Instagram.

And lastly check on the four forum sites I frequent.

This leads me to my 10:30am picture...

Still sitting here... Riveting, I know. But now I am writing my own blog post and eating yogurt instead of drinking coffee.

At 11:30am I had just got out of the shower and finished my makeup. Here I am picking out which lipgloss to wear and watching some YouTube.

Come 12:30 I was waiting for the guys to finish testing the engine so we could go to lunch. This is an engine that my boyfriend Tyson completely designed and engineered on his own. There is not another engine like this in the world.

FINALLY! Lunch time and MEXICAN FOOD!

Just brushing my teeth and putting my Invisalign back in. After every meal I have to floss, brush my teeth, and clean my aligners. That means three times a day! You were bound to see one of them.

Come 3:30pm I was back at the ole desk. Doing paperwork, making phone calls, perusing Pinterest and watching PinkSoFoxy on YouTube.

Pulling in to Walmart here. Yay for buying household items!

Bustttteeeddd. I got the 20% off coupon for Ulta so I had to do a little makeup shopping. I finally got the Naked 2 palette! I bought the Lorac Pro last year when the Naked's were so popular and bought the Naked Basics last year but I just could not decide which big Naked palette to get. I thought I had my mind made up until the Naked 3 came out. GAME CHANGER. But alas, I decided it was too rose toned for me. Naked 2 it is!

At 6:30 I had literally just got to the gym and jumped on the treadmill. (Hence why I had only made it nine-tenths of a mile.)

Me after a little sweat-sesh. No shame in my gym bathroom selfie!

Dinner and post-workout meal. An apple with peanut butter, celery, some pretzels, and some apple cinnamon Fig Newtons.

Winding down and getting ready for bed here. I picked up these Peter Thomas Roth peel pads at Ulta earlier so I was pumped to try them.

So that was my day! Not all that exciting but pretty typical for a weekday.

If you like, head over and read other's Photo a Day posts. I really hope this turns in to a weekly or monthly link-up. I love seeing what people do each day.

Thanks for reading!

NYX Eyeshadow Haul

Hi ladies! I know this isn't exactly a "makeup blog" and I am by no means a "makeup artist" but I am a girl who loves makeup! I wanted to share with you all that right now at Ulta all NYX products are 40% off. This makes their single eyeshadows $2.69! I love the NYX single eyeshadows. They are easily comparable to high-end brands and their color selection is very fun!

Here are the shades I got.

Sahara, Flamingo, Deep Bronze, Purple, and Lagoon Sparkle

I attempted to take some pictures of the color swatches.

All five of the shadows are shimmery. Lagoon Sparkle does have some glitter in it, but not overboard. I use primer underneath my eyeshadow and these colors last me all day. There is no fall out and the pigmentation is great. Also, they don't crease and they are not chalky.

I had a $3.50 off coupon to Ulta so technically I got one and a half of these shadows for free! GO check out the colors and let me know what you think.

This was not sponsored. All opinions are my own.

DIY Scrunch Butt Bikini Bottoms

If you haven't jumped on board the scrunch/pucker/cheeky butt bikini bottom train yet, CLIMB ABOARD! This my friends is the best thing you can do to your booty. It will make your butt look more defined and perkier! It will also eliminate that awful "saggy butt" look.

These bottoms cost anywhere from $25-45 dollars at Victoria's Secret, about $30 from Chynnda Dolls, and up to $85 at Beach Bunny. Why pay so much when you can just scrunch the bottoms you already own?!

Items You Will Need

1. Bikini bottoms

2. Thread to match

3. Sewing Machine

4. Scissors

5. Elastic, 1/4 inch wide

6. Pen

7. Ruler/Straight Edge

8. A butt

Instructions

1. Set-up your machine (straight stitch, length 2, width 3, tension 4) and load your thread and bobbin.

2. Lay your bikini bottoms flat with the lining facing up. Find the middle of the bottoms and mark the center.

3. Cut a piece of elastic the length of the bottoms.

4. Place the bottoms and the elastic under your presser foot and lower the foot.

5. Lower the needle in to the elastic and fabric.

6. Manually walk the needle through the elastic and fabric for about 3 or 4 stitches.

7. Reverse stitch over those stitches back to the top.

8. Now pull the elastic straight down. The harder you pull the elastic, the more scrunch your suit will have.

9. Hold the elastic in place with one hand and guide the suit from behind the presser foot with your other hand.

10. Sew all the way to the seam where the crotch of the bottoms begins then back stitch 4 or 5 stitches.

11. You should have some loose elastic... trim that elastic and loose thread and you are done!

It took me a couple of tries to get this right and I consider myself an "okay" sewer. I can sew basic things and mend clothing but working with delicate, stretchy fabrics can be pretty advanced. If you are a beginner at sewing, ask someone who knows how to sew for help. If you are a moderately good sewer, find an old bathing suit to practice on. You will most likely mess up the first time. Do not try this on an expensive suit on your first try! I bought a pair of bottoms from Wal-Mart for $5.00 to experiment with.

A few tips and tricks...

-The more you pull the elastic, the more scrunchie the bottoms will be. Don't pull too hard or the suit won't lay right. For the gold suit I started with about 8" of elastic and cut off 1" after I sewed it. For the teal suit I cut off about 2".

-If you have a pair of bottoms that are saggy in the butt or are one size too big, pull the elastic really hard and it will take the bottoms down about one size.

-This works best on tie-side bottoms. I haven't had much luck with band-side bottoms.

-You don't have to scrunch the whole bottom of you don't want to. If you just want to add a little "touch of scrunch" only do the very top like this...

or go about halfway like this...

Final Thoughts...

-Sorry you had to stare at pictures of my butt. I was the only model available... Tyson said he wouldn't do it. HA!

-If you don't have a sewing machine or aren't any good at sewing, just take your bottoms to a local seamstress. Show them this blog post and they can do it for you for about $5.00. Definitely worth it if you have a cute suit that needs an update!

Now get to scrunching! Good luck, ladies!